Euromat Advocates for European Taskforce to Counter €12bn Illegal Online Gambling Market

Europe’s illegal online gambling market generated an estimated €12bn in net revenue in 2025. This represents a threefold increase since 2019 and equals 25 per cent of the total European online gambling sector.

The figures come from research commissioned by Euromat, the European association for the land-based gaming and amusement industry. Conducted by Regulus Partners and Helios, the study reviewed 28 markets using web traffic analysis, digital marketing data, economic indicators and regulatory assessments. It concludes that measures such as higher taxation, product restrictions, advertising limits and affordability checks can drive consumers toward unlicensed operators.

Jason Frost, President of Euromat, stressed the imbalance this creates. Licensed land-based businesses face rising compliance costs and taxation that illegal competitors avoid entirely. According to reporting by G3 Newswire, Frost said this pressure contributes to closures in the regulated sector while the illegal market grows.

Scale of the Problem and Consumer Risks

Frost highlighted consumer protection as the core issue. Players on illegal sites lack stake limits, self-exclusion tools and customer fund safeguards that regulated operators must provide. The research also notes the growing sophistication of unlicensed brands, which use cryptocurrency payments, affiliate networks and social media advertising on platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. One cited example involved an unauthorised Romanian site posing as a Netflix-branded casino.

The study further links illegal gambling profits to organised crime, citing United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime insights on funding for drug trafficking, human trafficking and firearms smuggling. National steps, such as Croatia’s website blocking, offer only partial impact. Frost described existing enforcement as fragmented and insufficient for a cross-border challenge.

The Case for Unified European Enforcement

Euromat has distributed the report to national regulators, Members of the European Parliament, EU departments and Interpol. It plans sustained engagement to demonstrate the methodology and push for policy adjustments. Frost argued that excessive regulation risks exposing more players to harm by making licensed options less attractive.

He pointed to the Netherlands, where the regulator recently acknowledged that increased taxation and market pressure failed to produce intended outcomes. The association maintains that governments must address both lost tax revenue and the commercial sustainability of licensed operators, including impacts on employment and supply chains.

This development carries specific risks for the regulated land-based sector. Enforcement often targets compliant operators because they are easier to reach, while illegal activity operates beyond easy oversight. Without adjustment, the cost disparity will widen.

Path to Effective Coordination

A dedicated European taskforce could align regulators, law enforcement and EU institutions to counter sophisticated illegal methods that cross national borders. Such a framework would allow policymakers to balance consumer safeguards, tax objectives and market sustainability. Operators and regulators should monitor how this evidence shapes upcoming EU-level discussions on enforcement priorities.